Former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel just gave England fans everything they've missed over the last decade - Genuine, attacking football that is as easy on the eye as it is the heart rate.
At the time of his appointment, many England fans were sceptical about hiring Thomas Tuchel. He was being hired to do something that England has only done once: win the World Cup. The caveat, though, is that he'd have to do it by being the first coach to win the World Cup with a foreign country.
Thomas Tuchel gave England fans something to genuinely enjoy
We only have one World Cup game to judge Thomas Tuchel by, but it was easily the most impressive a team has looked at this year's World Cup. Against genuine competition, England showcased a nearly-perfect second half, and any anxieties that England fans had were genuinely stripped away immediately in the second half.
Gareth Southgate remains England's best manager of all-time. He didn't win anything, but he changed the trajectory of English football for the good. The only thing he was incapable of doing was finishing the job, but that's where a genuinely world-class coach in Thomas Tuchel benefits England.
Under Southgate, England wouldn't have played as bravely as they did against Croatia in the second half. Perhaps it could be explained an understandable psychological attachment Southgate had to doing well for England, but Tuchel doesn't have that attachment. That's a good thing.
Tuchel has proven that he's not here to impress anyone. He's a Champions League winner who is adored by most clubs he's managed in the past. He, of course, would love to win the World Cup, but he's not letting nerves get to him.
Chelsea fans already knew this about Thomas Tuchel
Chelsea fans know that Tuchel doesn't restrain himself in a box. He thinks and acts outside of it. In hindsight, he had absolutely no right to win the Champions League with that Chelsea team, particularly considering the failures of those before and after him, but he did it anyway.
The main reason why Chelsea won the Champions League in 2021 was not their players. It was Tuchel, and how he managed the competition.
They've thrown all the spanners in the world into this World Cup tournament and how it's structured. It's different to any tournament that's been played in the past, but it still requires the same strategy that Tuchel implemented in that Champions League-winning season.
Time will tell how far England goes, but with Thomas Tuchel at the helm, Chelsea fans can reminisce about the journey every step of the way.
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